By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | TuesdayFebruary 4, 2025
The transition from juniors to pros is turning out to be manageable for 17-year-old Wakane Sonobe of Japan. Weeks after winning the Aussie Open Girls’ singles title, Sonobe made the most of a wild card into qualifying at Abu Dhabi. She earned two Top 100 wins, over American Hailey Baptiste and Spain’s Cristina Bucsa, to reach the main draw.
On Monday she knocked off 55th-ranked Yuan Yue of China for her first WTA main draw win.
Sonobe, ranked 837 this week, is already showing signs of being a potential star on tour. She turned 17 two weeks ago in Melbourne, but don’t let the age fool you – the southpaw has a mature game complete with a strong lefty serve and power-packed ground strokes. She also is unintimidated by the net, and has been known to swoop in and put away a few volleys.
Get to know 17-year-old Japanese lefty Wakana Sonobe, who made a WTA main draw winning debut in Abu Dhabi this week.👉https://t.co/xUgqPuOTnd pic.twitter.com/dagODlRBBG
— Reem Abulleil (@ReemAbulleil) February 4, 2025
Sonobe is 9-0 across all levels so far in 2025. Last year she won 17 of 27 matches at the professional level, including a loss in the first round of qualifying at Abu Dhabi.
Born in Saitama, Japan, Sonobe was awarded a scholarship to move to train at the IMG Academy in Florida, courtesy of the Morita Tennis Fund — the same organization that sent ATP star Kei Nishikori and Shintaro Mochizuki to Bradenton in the past.
According to Reem Abulleil, who is covering Abu Dhabi for WTATennis.com this week, the Japanese junior had a chance to hit with Nishikori in Florida and credited him with giving her some valuable lessons. Her real idol, however is Petra Kvitova.
Sonobe, who became Japan’s first Girls’ champion in Melbourne two weeks ago, is hoping that her next moves will be made on the pro circuit. She will face either Ons Jabeur or Jelena Ostapenko in the second round.
Sonobe fired 36 winners in her 6-4, 6-3 win over Yuan, which included a comeback from 3-0 in the second set.
She is the third 2008 player to notch a win on the WTA Tour along with Laura Samson and Emerson Jones. Sonobe faced just two break points in her match against Yuan, dropping serve just once and converting four breaks of her own.
Keep an eye on this talented lefty, who could be working her way up the rankings over the next 52 weeks.
